New Year, new communications!

Happy New Year! This seems a good time to resurrect my blog, especially as I'm looking forward to a number of cultural moments, and have already seen two new films ...



The Reader has already been the subject of long reviews and - always a good sign for me! - the reviewers' conclusions differ widely. But it's a film you should see if you have thought about the issues surrounding the Holocaust and its legacy. For some the film is fragmented, for some the treatment of these grave issues is less than perfect, for some there is an excess of 'gratuitous' sex. So - lots of grey areas, lots of issues to reflect upon ... and not too many didactic or moralistic moments in the film (thank God!). I found it moving and largely engrossing, and the acting and filming excellent. Some of the scenes reminded me of my first visit to post-war Germany (Cologne) in 1961 - very evocative. Let me know what you think!



A couple of days later, I had the chance to attend a national preview at the Tyneside Cinema of Frost/Nixon, followed by a live satellite Q&A session with Peter Morgan (screenwriter) and Michael Sheen beamed from the Curzon, Mayfair. The film is very fine, with both Michael Sheen's and Frank Langella's performances riveting. At a time when we are waiting for a hopefully brave new chapter of the history of the US Presidency to begin, it was good to be reminded of the extraordinary issues surrounding Nixon's resignation, and the remarkable way in which they came to light through the medium of television.



I'll be surprised and disappointed if these films don't feature on Oscars Night. Frost/Nixon is on general release towards the end of January.

Getting Going Again

After a couple of years' silence, I've decided to resume my blog ... it must be the accustomed summer heat or some such unlikely trigger. Anyway, I hope what follows will be worth reading. It's a bit ironic, really, because I have been feeling quite overwhelmed by the sheer deluge of 'communication' that now faces most of us and makes such demands of us. We used to look forward to an envelope or two arriving through the letter-box in the morning (as long as they weren't bills). Then the fashion for telephone answering machines came along, and then the mobile phone, eventually complete with voicemail. Then electronic mail, both solicited and unsolicited. The amount of time which we now spend every day either sending or receiving messages is quite staggering, which probably explains why most of the conversations taking place on our high streets are with invisible contacts at the end of a phone line. I hate using my mobile phone in public, and get annoyed when I am forced to listen to private conversations conducted in a fairly loud voice on a train or bus. But all I am now demonstrating, I suppose, is that I am a grumpy old man. Anyway, I've been lured back to looking at, and sending e-mail more regularly. My original and best e-mail address (r.b.hill@lineone.net) remains in use, thanks to the technological genius of my first-born son, who saved me from thousands of unwanted messages, and ensured that my welcome e-mail now gets delivered direct (and without spam!) to a googlemail address.

But am I right in thinking that for all this modern communication, we haven't exactly made a great deal of progress in making the world a happier and more peaceful place? It's really the same as the old argument about labour-saving devices that have made our lives more hectic than ever.